Protective eyewear, such as goggles are frequently worn by a user when participating in sports (e.g., skiing, riding, sky-diving, etc.) and/or when the user is in a hazardous environment (e.g., various industrial or combat settings). Protective eyewear is commonly worn to provide eye protection for the user from debris, projectiles, sharp objects, or objects and impact that can cause eye injury.
Certain low profile goggles (e.g., jockey goggles) consist of a single flexible lens and an elastic strap attached to the lens. The lens, which may have foam or rubberized rim portion around the perimeter of the lens, is tensioned against the rider's face using the elastic strap. The lens is sufficiently flexible to allow it to contour against the user's face and the rim portion forms a seal with the user's face. However, a flexible lens as is generally used in conventional low profile goggles may not provide sufficient eye protection in certain situations (e.g., against ballistics or certain kinds of debris). Furthermore, flexing the lens may result in optical distortion. Moreover, the strap, which is typically made from silicon, rubber, or other elastic material, is typically permanently attached to the lens. As such, in the event that the strap becomes unusable (stretched-out) or damaged, replacement of the whole goggle, including the lens, may be required even though the lens may be in working condition.
The examples according to the present invention may address some or all of the shortcomings of conventional goggles of this kind and/or may provide further advantages as will be appreciated in light of this disclosure.